ERC announces Chaffee Pizza as the inaugural tenant at The Landing

Chaffee Pizza Company, LLC has been named as the first tenant of ERC Holdings’ The Landing commercial development in front of the Walmart distribution center on Zero Street in Fort Smith. ERC announced the deal via press release on Friday (July 20).

“Chaffee Crossing residents, as well as those traveling along Zero Street, will soon have the opportunity to enjoy a new dining experience for the area. Food service is needed for those choosing to live, work, and play in Fort Smith’s growing Chaffee Crossing area. We are honored to assist Chaffee Pizza in their new endeavor,” said ERC Chairman Rod Coleman in the release.

Over the last decade, the Chaffee Crossing district has received more than $1.5 billion in public-private investments, and it supports 3,500 jobs and 24 residential developments, but outside of Stonehouse, there haven’t been many restaurants.

Coleman told Talk Business & Politics in a follow-up interview the restaurant would inhabit 1,250 square feet of the 5,000 square feet of leasable space and that it would employ between 5-10 employees with a seating capacity of 25 at a time, a drive-thru window, and a still-in-development menu specializing in brick oven pizzas and pasta.

Chaffee Pizza owner Alisa Phommavong, whose family lives in the Chaffee Crossing area, plans to open the restaurant before the end of 2018.

As for the remaining 3,750 square feet, Coleman said leasing agent Bob Cooper, Jr., of Ghan & Cooper, is “working with numerous other prospective tenants for the remaining space” and that ERC was “close” to making more announcements.

The news is the latest in a busy year at Chaffee Crossing for Coleman. Last September, he announced Stonecrest, an $8 million luxury duplex development and his fifth residential neighborhood in the district, following The Haven, Highland Crossing, Avalon, and Providence.

In May, ERC broke ground on an $11 million “live-above-retail” development at 9101 R.A. Young Jr. Drive called The HUB at Providence. The HUB includes 43 living spaces (23 townhomes between 1,593 and 2,634 square feet, 20 apartments between 530 and 701 square feet). Two buildings will feature 8,800 square feet of commercial space, 4,400 in each; and there will be a 2,500-square foot location for restaurant use. Commercial tenants have yet to be announced.